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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pop · stem · degree · prune · leaves · lash · mine · field

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. degree — temperature
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. stem — to come from
  6. pop — soda
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. field — for sport
  10. prune — to trim
  11. field — farmland
  12. field — a subject
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. degree — an amount
  15. pop — to visit
  16. pop — music
  17. degree — from a university
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. mine — for digging
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. prune — to trim
  24. stem — of a plant

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com